UPDATED: Gov Fubara Defects To APC

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Governor Siminalayi Fubara Defects to APC

Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has formally defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The announcement was made during a stakeholders’ meeting at the Government House in Port Harcourt on December 9, 2025. Fubara explained that his decision was rooted in loyalty to President Bola Tinubu, whom he credited with sustaining his political survival. He declared that without Tinubu’s support, he would have already been a “former governor.”

The governor emphasized that supporting the President required full alignment with the APC, not what he described as “backyard support.” He urged his followers, who had endured political struggles alongside him, to join him in the move to the ruling party. His defection followed mounting pressure after the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule, and 17 other lawmakers abandoned the PDP for the APC just four days earlier, citing internal crises within the opposition party.

This wave of defections reflects a broader political realignment in Nigeria’s South-South region. Historically a PDP stronghold since 1999, the region has seen a steady erosion of the party’s influence.

Earlier in 2025, governors Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta and Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom crossed over to the APC, followed by Bayelsa’s Douye Diri in November. Fubara’s move leaves the PDP without a sitting governor in the South-South, marking a significant shift in the political landscape.

The defection also underscores the waning influence of the PDP in Rivers State. The party had maintained dominance there for decades, but internal divisions deepened after former governor Nyesom Wike openly supported Bola Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election, defying his party’s candidate, Atiku Abubakar. Wike’s subsequent appointment as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory further entrenched APC’s influence.

Fubara’s tenure has been marred by political turmoil, including a bitter feud with Wike that led to legislative attempts to impeach him and the partial demolition of the State Assembly complex. The crisis escalated to the point where President Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State in March 2025, suspending Fubara, his deputy, and the lawmakers. Vice Admiral Ibok Ete (retd.) was appointed as administrator until September, when the emergency rule expired and Fubara was reinstated.

The PDP, meanwhile, continues to grapple with leadership crises at the national level, with factions engaging in expulsions and counter-expulsions since the fallout of the 2023 presidential election.

Fubara’s defection is both a symptom and a catalyst of the party’s weakening grip, particularly in regions once considered its bastions of power.

This historic shift makes Rivers State an APC-governed territory for the first time, signaling a new era in the state’s political trajectory and further consolidating the ruling party’s dominance across the South-South.